DaoTrace

Do you ever feel anxious, but can't figure out what you're actually afraid of?

DaoTrace is a self-reflection tool built on the "River World" philosophy from the book "Ren Xuan Tian Xuan Lun" (On Human and Heavenly Choice). Each day, seven guided layers help you reach the bottom of your mind's river — and pick up a stone.

Pick a Stone Every Day

7 layers, each deeper than the last:

Layer 1 · Fact: What happened today that stirred the water? Write only what occurred.
Layer 2 · First Reaction: What did you feel immediately? Not the "right" answer.
Layer 3 · Greed: What did you actually want? Be specific — no grand words.
Layer 4 · Fear: What are you actually afraid of? Write the ugliest, smallest, most direct fear.
Layer 5 · Self-justification: What excuse did you use to feel better?
Layer 6 · Main Stone: What stone did you pick up today? One sentence only.
Layer 7 · Simulate Choice: If you face the same thing tomorrow, what will you choose?

Once sealed, entries cannot be edited — whatever you pulled up is what it is.

Understand Your Patterns

Every sealed entry triggers automatic NLP clustering to surface recurring stones.

- Semantic clustering groups similar stones (Apple NaturalLanguage framework, fully on-device)
- Stone timeline shows which stones keep reappearing
- Weekly / monthly reports highlight repeated patterns
- Stone comparison: view entries from the same group side by side to see if you've actually changed

See Your River

A dynamic SpriteKit visualization maps your data into a living river:
River width (variety of topics), water depth (7-layer completion rate), flow speed (recording frequency), surface ripples (how many excuses you wrote), and river stones (your top recurring patterns).

Radically Minimal — Written for Yourself

DaoTrace intentionally does not include:
- AI commentary on your entries (thinking is yours, not the tool's)
- Streaks or check-in rewards (no manufactured anxiety)
- Social sharing (your stones don't need anyone's approval)
- Psychological assessments

All data stays on your device (SwiftData local storage). iCloud sync available via Apple CloudKit encryption.

More Details

- Supports Simplified Chinese / Traditional Chinese / English — switch instantly in Settings
- Face ID / Touch ID App Lock to protect deeply private content
- Full dark mode support, system-synced or manual
- Home screen Widget: today's status + current river type
- Auto-save drafts every 30 seconds and on layer switch
- Later Notes: add reflections after sealing, shown in a different color beside the original

DaoTrace is a self-awareness tool and does not provide mental health counseling, therapy, or medical advice. If you are experiencing serious psychological distress, please seek professional help.

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